The present invention relates to an oral cavity cleaning device for cleaning the oral cavity by driving a pump with a cleaning head being introduced into the oral cavity, in order to suck the residual matter in the oral cavity, to wash the oral cavity by blowing a liquid from the cleaning head, and to suck and remove the waste liquid in the oral cavity after having washed the oral cavity.
There have heretofore been proposed oral cavity cleaning devices of this kind, in which a pump and a cleaning head are coupled together through a waste tube which is provided with a waste tank on its way, and the pump is driven with the cleaning head being introduced into the oral cavity to suck residual matter in the oral cavity and to drain it into the waste tank, thereby to clean the oral cavity.
According to the oral cavity cleaning device of this kind as shown, for example, in FIG. 14, the cleaning head 1 is formed in the shape of a toothbrush, a shank 2 thereof includes a slender liquid feed passage 3 and a slender waste passage 4 that run in parallel therein, and a liquid feed port 5 and a waste port 6, which are communicated with the liquid feed passage 3 and with the waste passage 4, are formed in a hair-implanted surface 2a of the brush 7.
A nursing person who attempts to wash the oral cavity of a physically handicapped person holds the cleaning head 1 by his hand to put the brush 7 into the oral cavity, and drives the pump, whereby the water stored in, for example, a liquid feed tank is sent through the liquid feed tube, supplied into the oral cavity from the liquid feed port 5 through the liquid feed passage 3 connected to the liquid feed tube while brushing the oral cavity with the brush 7, so that the brushed lees are washed away with water. The waste liquid that collects in the oral cavity is sucked by the pump from the waste port through the waste passage 4, and is drained, for example, into the waste tank through the waste tube connected to the waste passage 4.
With the above oral cavity cleaning device, however, the opening at the end of the cleaning head must have a size which is large to some extent so as to suck even those residual matters that are large to a slight degree. Then, it becomes necessary to employ a large pump to reliably suck the residual matter. An increase in the pump not only causes an increase in the cost but also causes the device as a whole to become heavy and bulky.
With the oral cavity cleaning device using the cleaning head 1 shown in FIG. 14, further, the air around the brush 7 is sucked at the time of sucking the waste liquid; i.e., the waste liquid is sucked poorly efficiently. To enhance the sucking efficiency, therefore, it becomes necessary to employ a relatively large pump similarly causing an increase in the cost and causing the whole device to become heavy and bulky. The device becomes less suited for being carried, loses operability, and gives an increased burden for a nursing person who takes care of a physically handicapped person in his home or visiting the handicapped person""s home.
The object of the present invention, therefore, is to provide a device which is capable of reliably sucking the residual matter, which is cheaply constructed as a result of using a small pump, which as a whole is light in weight and small in size, which is easy to carry and easy to operate giving reduced burden for a nursing person by solving the above-mentioned problems inherent in the prior art.
A first invention is concerned with an oral cavity cleaning device wherein a pump is driven with a cleaning head introduced in the oral cavity to suck the residual matter in the oral cavity and to drain it into a waste liquid tank in order to clean the oral cavity, and wherein squeezing means is provided in a waste flow passage of from an end of the cleaning head to a suction port of the waste liquid tank to squeeze the waste flow passage.
When the residual matter cannot be sucked with a normal suction force at the time of cleaning, the waste flow passage is squeezed by the squeezing means to increase the negative pressure and, then, the squeeze is released, so that the residual matter is sucked at a breath with the increased negative pressure.
Thus, the device as a whole is fabricated light in weight and small in size and at a reduced cost as a result of using a small pump, the device being easily carried and easily operated, giving reduced burden for the nursing person. When the residual matter cannot be sucked with the normal suction force during the cleaning, the waste flow passage is squeezed by the squeezing means to increase the negative pressure and, then, the squeeze is released, so that the residual matter is sucked at a breath with the increased negative pressure. Thus, the residual matter is reliably sucked.
In the oral cavity cleaning device of the first invention, the squeezing means may be so constituted as to compress a flexible portion of the waste tube. The flexible portion of the waste tube is compressed by the squeezing means to squeeze the waste flow passage. Thereafter, compression is released to open the waste flow passage. This makes it possible to improve the operability of the squeezing means relying upon a simple and cheap constitution in addition to obtaining the effect of the first invention.
In the oral cavity cleaning device of the first invention, further, the squeezing means may be so constituted as to open and close the end of the cleaning head. Then, the end of the cleaning head is closed by the squeezing means to squeeze the waste flow passage. Thereafter, the end of the cleaning head is opened to open the waste flow passage. This similarly makes it possible to increase the degree of vacuum up to the end of the cleaning head to improve the sucking efficiency in addition to obtaining the effect of the first invention.
In the oral cavity cleaning device of the first invention, further, the squeezing means may be constituted by a hand switch and a valve which electrically opens and closes the waste flow passage upon operating the hand switch. The hand switch is operated to close the valve and, hence, to squeeze the waste flow passage. Thereafter, the valve is opened to open the waste flow passage. Since the valve is opened and closed by turning the hand switch on or off, the squeezing means is more easily operated with a light touch in addition to obtaining the effect of the first invention.
In the oral cavity cleaning device of the first invention, further, the squeezing means may be operated at regular time intervals when the pump is driven to squeeze the waste flow passage. When the pump is driven, therefore, the squeezing means is automatically operated at regular time intervals to squeeze the waste flow passage. This enhances the operability eliminating the need of operating the squeezing means by hand each time in addition to obtaining the effect of the first invention.
A second invention is concerned with an oral cavity cleaning device wherein a pump is driven with a cleaning head introduced in the oral cavity to suck the residual matter in the oral cavity and to drain it into a waste liquid tank in order to clean the oral cavity, and wherein a water feed port of a water feed tube is provided in a waste flow passage of from an end of the cleaning head to a suction port of the waste liquid tank to feed the water.
When residual matter cannot be sucked with the normal suction force at the time of cleaning, the water is supplied to the waste flow passage from the water feed port through th water feed tube to increase the negative pressure in the waste tube, so that the residual matter is sucked at a breath with the increased negative pressure.
When the residual matter cannot be sucked with the normal suction force at the time of cleaning, therefore, the water is supplied into the waste flow passage from the water feed port through the water feed tube to increase the negative pressure in the waste tube, so that the residual matter is sucked at a breath with the increased negative pressure. Even when the amount of residual matter is small, therefore, the residual matter can be reliably sucked together with the water.
A third invention is concerned with an oral cavity cleaning device wherein a pump is driven to feed a liquid into the oral cavity through a liquid feed passage in a cleaning head to wash the oral cavity, and the waste liquid in the oral cavity is sucked and is drained through a waste passage in the cleaning head, and wherein a cleaning member is mounted on the cleaning head covering the liquid feed port and the waste port, the cleaning member being made of a porous material such as a sponge having a liquid-permeating property.
At the time of cleaning the oral cavity, the cleaning member is fitted to a portion to be cleaned in the oral cavity, and the waste liquid is sucked through the cleaning member.
At the time of sucking the waste liquid in the oral cavity by the pump, therefore, the cleaning member limits the suction of the air and, besides, the waste liquid is sucked through the cleaning member. This helps increase the ability for sucking the waste liquid, enabling the pump of a small size to be employed. Accordingly, the oral cavity cleaning device as a whole is constructed in a compact size and at a decreased cost. Further, since the cleaning is effected with the cleaning member being impregnated with a suitable amount of liquid, even the dry oral cavity can be washed comfortably and efficiently.
In the above-mentioned oral cavity cleaning device of the third invention, the cleaning head may be replaceably provided with the cleaning member. When the cleaning member is worn out, the cleaning member is removed from the cleaning head and is replaced by a new one. This makes it possible to replace only the cleaning member that is worn out by a new one and, hence, to use the oral cavity cleaning device for an extended period of time in addition to obtaining the effect of the third invention.
The cleaning head may be provided with a waste tube that forms a waste passage, and the end of the waste tube may be arranged in the cleaning member. The end of the waste tube provided for the cleaning head is disposed inside the cleaning member and does not come into direct contact with the oral cavity, enabling the device to be comfortably used in addition to obtaining the effect of the third invention.
It is further desired that the outer circumference of the cleaning member is formed rugged. At the time of washing the oral cavity, foul and dirty matters such as lees of foods are scraped off by the rugged portion of the cleaning member. Since the outer circumference of the cleaning member is formed rugged, foul and dirty matters such as lees of foods are effectively scraped off by the rugged portion at the time of cleaning the oral cavity contributing to enhancing the efficiency for washing the oral cavity in addition to obtaining the effect of the third invention.
At the time of cleaning the cleaning member, further, there may be provided a cleaning pump for feeding the liquid to the cleaning member through the waste passage. At the time of cleaning the cleaning member, the cleaning pump is driven, whereby the liquid is fed to the cleaning member through the waste passage to wash away the foul and dirty matters adhered on the cleaning member. Thus, the cleaning member is cleaned by using the waste passage and feeding the liquid to the cleaning member through the waste passage. Therefore, the cleaning member is easily and effectively washed without using tap water in addition to obtaining the effect of the third invention.
Moreover, the cleaning head may be constituted by detachably attaching a grip to a head body, forming an outer member such as an outer case of the head body using an elastic member, and fitting an end of the grip to a base end of the outer member to air-tightly couple the grip and the outer member together. The cleaning head is constituted by detachably attaching the grip to the head body in a manner that they can be disassembled. It is therefore allowed to easily clean the head. Besides, the outer member of the cleaning head is made of an elastic member, and the outer member itself is air-tightly coupled to the grip, making it possible to decrease the number of parts and to decrease the cost.